Anticoccidial efficacy of metronidazole

Abstract EN

This study was carried out to study the efficacy of metronidazole as anticoccidial drug at two levels of doses (25 and 50 mg / kg B.W) for 5 consecutive days via drinking water.

One hundred and fifty mixed sex one day old Arbor Acres F.s.

chicks were divided into six equal main groups.

All were fed on ordinary ration free from any anticoccidial agents all over the experiment (41 days).

-The first group was non infected non treated (negative control).

The second group was treated without infection with 25 mg / kg of metronidazole (flagyl susp Alex co), the third group was treated with 50 mg / kg B.W of metronidazole without infection the fourth group was infected non treated group (positive control).

The fifth and sixth groups were infected with E.

tenella (50.000 oocysts / bird) at 18 days of age and treated with (25 and 50mg / kg B.W) of metronidazole respectively after symptoms appeared for 5 consecutive days.

The evaluation was based on clinical signs, lesion scores, oocyst counts, and histopathologically findings of treated and infected non treated group.

The results showed that the infected non treated group (positive control) showed the typical signs of coccidiosis including depression, loss of appetite and bloody droppings one week post infection.

Variable degrees of illness were recorded until the end of experiment.

Medication of metronidazole after infection at both dose levels improved the clinical signs, oocyst counts and Lesion score,The mortality rate as well as the epithelial lining of the intestinal gland of infected treated group than that of the infected non treated group, in addition to the degeneration of most of the developmental stages of E tenella in treated Groups.